Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-40 incident near Boston, Massachusetts, March 30, 1988
On March 30, 1988 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-40, registered N154US, suffered minor damage in an incident near Boston, Massachusetts (Logan Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 86 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF THE BATTERY GROUND CONNECTION THAT RESULTED IN PREMATURE LOOSENING OF THE CONNECTION AND ELECTRICAL ARC IGNITION OF POOLED FUEL IN THE CAC BILGE. THE FUEL WAS NOT DRAINED OVERBOARD DUE TO INOPERATIVE CAC BILGE AREA DRAIN VALVES. CONTRIBUTING TO THE INCIDENT WAS NORTHWEST'S NON-COMPLIANCE WITH A SERVICE BULLETIN TO MODIFY THE GROUND CABLE ATTACHMENT BRACKET TO PREVENT LOOSENING OF THE CONNECTION.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 30, 1988 · about 11:30 pm local time · cases in 1988
- Place
- Boston, Massachusetts · Logan Int'L · cases near this airport
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 86 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-40 · all DC-10-40s on the register
- Registration
- N154US · registry record · serial 46763
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG TAXI TO GATE AFTER LDG, CREW STARTED APU NORMALLY. WHILE TAXIING NR 3 PNEUMATIC DUCT FAIL LT ILLUMINATED. LATER, THE CENTER ACCESSORY COMPT (CAC) DOOR WARNING LT ILLUMINATED AND GND PERS SAW SMOKE EMANATING FM THE FUSELAGE OUTFLOW VALVES. AFTER ENG SHUTDOWN, SMOKE ENTERED THE CABIN AND THE APU TRIPPED OFF. FIRE DEPT PERS FND CAC OUTSIDE DOOR HOT, THEN, USING CABIN FLOOR HATCH, OBSRVED 1-2 FT HIGH FLAMES IN CAC. FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED WITH DMG LIMITED TO CAC. INVEST REVEALED IMPROPER/LOOSE BATTERY GND CONNECTION. NORMAL CABLE MOVEMENT WOULD LOOSEN CONNECTION DRG BATT DISCONNECT. BURNED INSULATION BLANKETS MET SPEC BUT WERE COATED WITH SYNTHETIC HYD FLUID (SLAT ACTUATOR LKG) AND JET FUEL. FIRE PATTERN SUGGESTED FUEL SEEPAGE ALONG BULKHEAD FASTENER LINE. BATT GND LAST INSTALLED NOV,87. BATT LAST CHDG 2 WKS BEFORE INCIDENT. SERVICE BULLETIN PERTAINING TO BATT GND NOT COMPLIED. INOPERATIVE CAC DRAIN VALVES ALLOWED FUEL TO POOL IN CAC BILGE. NO CAC FIRE WARNING OR EXTINGUISHER SYSTEM WAS INSTALLED.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 14,156 hours in all; 4,464 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 33,818 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 21, 1988; 61 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 555,000 lb
- Seats: 270
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D-20 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: JFK New York NY at 10:53 pm
- Destination: BOS
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 4R, 10,005 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 150° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 pm from BOS
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 15 | |||
| Passengers | 71 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N154US the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N154US on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10 17 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Mcdonnell Douglas 254 aircraft on the register
- Engine: P&W JT9D-20 13 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- General Edward Lawrence Logan International · nearest airport
- John F Kennedy International · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Massachusetts 987 since 1982 · 91 in the last ten years
- Massachusetts 2,646 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N154US 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/DCA88IA044.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.